A general approach to the synthesis of 4,7-disubstituted cephams is described starting from a,bunsaturated aldehydes or ketones via 4-functionally substituted tetrahydro-1,3-thiazine-2-thiones.

The reactions of substituted anilines with chloroacetamide and sulfur in the presence of triethylamine afford monothiooxamides, which being treated with K3Fe(CN)6 are cyclized to 2-carbamoylbenzothiazoles. The cyclization is established to be accompanied by the formation of the corresponding thiooxanilic acids, which are also cyclized to benzothiazole-2-carboxylic acids.

Epoxide 1 and benzamides 4 can be transformed, by means of an excess of lithium and a catalytic amount of an arene (naphthalene or DTBB) upon reaction of intermediates 2 and 5 with different electrophiles, into the D-glucose 3 and cyclohexadiene derivatives 6, respectively. The same couple lithium-arene in the presence of nickel chloride dihydrate can also be used in the reduction of halogenated compounds 7 to yield products 8.

It has been found that the condensation of 1-(1-arylimidazolin-2-yl)-3-arylurea derivatives with oxalyl chloride lead to formation of 1-aryl-5,6(1H)dioxo--2,3-dihydroimidazo[1,2-a]imidazole and 1,6-dihydro- 5,7(1H)dioxo-2,3-dihydroimidazo[1,2-a][1,3,5]triazine systems. Probable course of reaction is discussed.

Reaction of 1,2-dicarbonyl compounds with ureas can serve as a convenient method of imidazolidine ring construction [1, 2]. The 4,5-dihydroxyimidazolidine-2-ones obtained as a result of this reaction are multifunctional compounds and can be used as starting material for preparation of various imidazole derivatives. For example, 4,5-dihydroxyimidazolidine-2-ones react with some nucleophiles to give 4,5- disubstituted imidazolidine-2-ones [2, 3]. The latter substances are of considerable interest owing to their useful properties. Some of these compounds have been found to be sedatives and hypnotics [4], tranquilizers [5], herbicides [6], steel corrosion inhibitors [7], cotton fabric modifiers [8], high-energy constituents of explosives [9], etc. Thus investigation of the reaction of 4,5-dihydroxyimidazolidine-2-ones with some new nucleophiles is very important from synthetic and practical points of view. In the present communication we report some results of our study on this reaction using arylsulfinic acids as nucleophiles.

Conditions of synthesis of 2-alkoxy- or 2-hydroxy-3-(arylaminomethylene)-4-chromanones and 3-(aryliminomethyl)-4-chromenones in the reaction of 3-formylchromones with arylaminoacids have been investigated. The alkylation of 2-alkoxy-3-(arylaminomethylene)-4- chromanones by alkylhalides was carried out. Rate coefficients for the acid-catalyzed formation of chromanone-chromenone system were measured. Dependence of reaction rate upon the structure of starting compounds, the type of used reaction medium and the concentration of catalyst, respectively, have been studied.

Synthesis of 2-(b -(aryl-X)styryl)benzothiazoles (2a - 2z) (X = 0, O, S) from aromatic or heterocyclic aldehydes and 2-naphthylmethyl-, 2-aryloxymethyl- or 2-arylthiomethyl benzothiazoles is reported. Phthalides 4a - 4f were prepared by Gabriel modification of Perkin synthesis. Products were confirmed by NMR spectral and elemental analysis. Prepared compounds were tested on herbicidal and growth - regulating activity. The semiempirical AM1 quantum - chemical method has been used to study an optimal conformation and heats of formation.

Divinylamines (3a - 3d) were prepared by reaction of the corresponding thiazolidines (1a - 1d) with silver carbonate and DBU. The reaction of 3a with DDQ led to the synthesis of an azepine derivative 7.

a,b-Unsaturated ketones were transformed into syn-epoxyalcohols by sequential use of diisobutylaluminium hydride and tert-butylhydroperoxide

The growing demand for enantiomerically pure compounds has led chemists to investigate a variety of approaches to such a sort of molecules. One method that has been widely recognized lies in the use of carbohydrates for preparing suitable chiral building blocks bearing, in most cases, several oxygenated functions in different oxidation states